I've posted this in a couple of places I figured it'd be helpful to post here..

A few tips I have discovered making so many videos in short period of time.. (because I wanted to have three new ones by AAC)

Why do I write this? Because I want AMV contests to be more interesting.

- Understand your charters motivations (this makes drama/romance editing easier)- Understand that no sound is tied down to any one type of movement.- Understand what your goal in making the video is.- Understand your audience might not care about the show your working with.- Take breaks because some errors you won't notice till the morning. - Read all the lyrics (even if you don't follow them)- Understand the background to a song and it's original meaning.- Map out the plot somehow on paper or in your mind without editing it.- Look at the use of dark and light in your videos (are they mismatched)- Camera motion can be more effective then what's in the scene sometimes.- Don't put in effects if you find them cheesy just to add fx..- Learn avi snyth and understand it's benefits- Make a video code for your file names (example all romance scenes start with ROM)- Don't use long shots if they aren't needed!- Don't use lip sync if isn't needed!- Don't use too many face shots to fill time..- Make sure your video has oomf at the end and the beginning.- Don't Change Near --> Far --> Near scenes too much..- Censor songs correctly (unless it's a comedy video) don't use the beep sound.- 400% speed doesn't make your video better, cutting the video to fit the music dose.- Stay away form Low quality video and audio.- Don't watermark or bump your contest videos.- Don't use video with subs and try and crop them out (makes your video look like ass)- Check your export settings from your timeline are they correct?_ Successful Multianime videos tend to be more abstract then solid.

OtakuForLife wrote:- Understand that no sound is tied down to any one type of movement.- Look at the use of dark and light in your videos (are they mismatched)- Camera motion can be more effective then what's in the scene sometimes.- Don't use too many face shots to fill time..- Don't Change Near --> Far --> Near scenes too much..

Conversely, don't use closeups if they're not needed and don't use long shots to fill time. Don't use one thing in particular to fill time, and try to find non-filler before resorting to space-filling clips. Storyboarding or editing parts of the video out of order are helpful, as the material you have for the rest of the video can suggest something to fill the gaps.

- Don't Change Near --> Far --> Near scenes too much.

...Unless you're doing it deliberately to build tension or whatever else it is you're actively trying to do.